Environmental change,hydromorphological reference conditions and the restoration of Polish Carpathian rivers

In the twentieth century Polish Carpathian rivers were considerably modified by channelization and gravel mining, with significant detrimental effects to their ecological integrity, vertical stability of the streambeds and flood hazard to downstream river reaches. Restoration of the rivers is thus necessary to improve their ecological status and re‐establish geomorphic dynamic equilibrium conditions. Various approaches to defining hydromorphological reference conditions, proposed to date in river restoration literature, have serious deficiencies. In particular, environmental changes that took place in the catchments of Carpathian rivers during the twentieth century invalidate the historical state of the rivers as reference for their restoration. This is illustrated by a change from bar‐braided to island‐braided channel pattern that occurred in the past century in unmanaged sections of the Czarny Dunajec in response to a reduction in flow and sediment dynamics of the river. We indicate that reference conditions should be defined as those which exist or would exist under present environmental conditions in the catchment but without human influence on the channel, riparian zone and floodplain of the river which is to be restored. This assumption was tested through the evaluation of hydromorphological river quality of the Czarny Dunajec according to the European Standard EN‐14614. The evaluation confirmed a high‐status hydromorphological quality in an unmanaged channel section, which can thus be used as a reference for restoration of impacted river sections. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Winter Arctic Amplification at the synoptic timescale, 1979–2018, its regional variation and response to tropical and extratropical variability

We investigate winter Arctic Amplification (AA) on synoptic timescales and at regional scales using a daily version of the Arctic Amplification Index (AAI) and examine causes on a synoptic scale. The persistence, frequency and intensity of high AAI events show significant increases over the Arctic. Similarly, low AAI events are decreasing in frequency, persistence and intensity. In both cases, there are regional variations in these trends, in terms of significance and timing. Significant trends in increasing persistence, frequency and intensity of high AAI events in winter are concentrated in the period 2000–2009, with few significant trends before and after this. There are some decreases in sea-ice concentration in response to synoptic-scale AA events and these AA events can contribute to the decadal trends in AA found in other studies. A sectoral analysis of the Arctic indicates that in the Beaufort–Chukchi and East Siberian–Laptev Seas, synoptic scale high AAI events can be driven by tropical teleconnections while in other Arctic sectors, it is the intrusion of moisture-transporting synoptic cyclones into the Arctic that is most important in synoptic-scale AA. The presence of Rossby wave breaking during high AAI events is indicative of forcing from lower latitudes, modulated by variations in the jet stream. An important conclusion is that the increased persistence, frequency and intensity of synoptic-scale high AAI events make significant contributions to the interannual trend in AA.

     

Comparative assessment of Japan's long-term carbon budget under different effort-sharing principles

This article assesses Japan's carbon budgets up to 2100 in the global efforts to achieve the 2?°C target under different effort-sharing approaches based on long-term GHG mitigation scenarios published in 13 studies. The article also presents exemplary emission trajectories for Japan to stay within the calculated budget.

The literature data allow for an in-depth analysis of four effort-sharing categories. For a 450?ppm CO₂e stabilization level, the remaining carbon budgets for 2014–2100 were negative for the effort-sharing category that emphasizes historical responsibility and capability. For the other three, including the reference ‘Cost-effectiveness’ category, which showed the highest budget range among all categories, the calculated remaining budgets (20th and 80th percentile ranges) would run out in 21–29 years if the current emission levels were to continue. A 550?ppm CO₂e stabilization level increases the budgets by 6–17 years-equivalent of the current emissions, depending on the effort-sharing category. Exemplary emissions trajectories staying within the calculated budgets were also analysed for ‘Equality’, ‘Staged’ and ‘Cost-effectiveness’ categories. For a 450?ppm CO₂e stabilization level, Japan's GHG emissions would need to phase out sometime between 2045 and 2080, and the emission reductions in 2030 would be at least 16–29% below 1990 levels even for the most lenient ‘Cost-effectiveness’ category, and 29–36% for the ‘Equality’ category. The start year for accelerated emissions reductions and the emissions convergence level in the long term have major impact on the emissions reduction rates that need to be achieved, particularly in the case of smaller budgets.

Policy relevance

In previous climate mitigation target formulation processes for 2020 and 2030 in Japan, neither equity principles nor long-term management of cumulative GHG emissions was at the centre of discussion. This article quantitatively assesses how much more GHGs Japan can emit by 2100 to achieve the 2?°C target in light of different effort-sharing approaches, and how Japan's GHG emissions can be managed up to 2100. The long-term implications of recent energy policy developments following the Fukushima nuclear disaster for the calculated carbon budgets are also discussed.     

Relationships between climatic factors and flower and boll production in Egyptian cotton (Gossypium barbadense)

Fruiting of cotton plant is determined and influenced by cultivar, climatic conditions, management practices and pests. An understanding of the flowering and boll retention patterns of cotton cultivars can contribute to more efficient and economical crop management. The objective of this investigation was to study the effect of various climatic factors on flower and boll production of Egyptian cotton. This could be used in formulating advanced predictions of the effect of certain climatic conditions on the production of Egyptian cotton. Two uniform field trials, using cotton Gossypium barbadense cv. Giza 75 were carried out in 1992 and 1993 at the Agricultural Research Station, Agricultural Research Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Giza, Egypt, to investigate the relationships between climatic factors, flower and boll production. Climatic factors included maximum and minimum air temperatures along with their difference, evaporation, surface soil temperature (grass temperature or green cover temperature) at 0600 and 1800 h°C⁻¹, sunshine duration, maximum and minimum humidity and wind speed. The effects of climatic factors on flower and boll production were quantified in the absence of water and nutritional deficits and damage effects of insects. Results obtained indicate that evaporation, sunshine duration, humidity, surface soil temperature at 1800 h, and maximum air temperature, were the important climatic factors that significantly affect flower and boll production of Egyptian cotton. Consequently, applying appropriate specific cultural practices that minimize the deleterious effect of these factors will lead to an improvement in cotton yield.     

Painting the floor with a hammer: Technical fixes in fisheries management

Fisheries management benefits from the contribution of several academic disciplines, each with their own perspectives, concerns and solutions. In this essay we argue that the contribution of biology, economics, sociology and other relevant disciplines to fisheries would be improved if they originated from broader, more integrated analytical perspectives that are attuned to the empirical realities of fisheries management. Today, disciplinary boundaries narrow the perspectives of fisheries management, creating tunnel vision and standardized technical fixes to complex and diverse management problems. Having worked separately and together for a number of years in fisheries research and consultancy in many parts of the world we, as a group of biologists, economists and sociologists, feel that the time to rid ourselves from disciplinary dogmatism is long overdue. We claim that improvements in fisheries management will be realized not through the promotion of technical fixes but instead by embracing and responding to the complexity of the management problem.     

Reactive transport of gentisic acid in a hematite-coated sand column: Experimental study and modeling

The adsorption of gentisic acid (GA) by hematite nano-particles was examined under static and dynamic conditions by conducting batch and column tests. To simulate natural sediments, the iron oxide was deposited on 10 μm quartz particles. The GA adsorption was described by a surface complexation model fitted to pH-adsorption curves with GA concentrations of 0.1-1 mM in a pH range of 3-10. The surface was described with one type of site (FeOH°), while gentisic acid at the surface was described by two surface complexes (FeLH₂°, log K_int = 8.9 and FeLH⁻, log K_int = −8.2). Modeling was conducted with PHREEQC-2 using the MINTEQ database. From a kinetic point of view, the intrinsic chemical reactions were likely to be the rate-limiting step of sorption (∼10⁻³ s⁻¹) while external and internal mass transfer rates (∼10² s⁻¹) were much faster. Under flow through conditions (column), adsorption of GA to hematite-coated sand was about 7-times lower than under turbulent mixing (batch). This difference could not be explained by chemical adsorption kinetics as shown by test calculations run with HYDRUS-1D software. Surface complexation model simulations however successfully described the data when the surface area was adjusted, suggesting that under flow conditions the accessibility to the reactive surface sites was reduced. The exact mechanism responsible for the increased mobility of GA could not be determined but some parameters suggested that decreased external mass transfer between solution and surface may play a significant role under flow through conditions.     

Passive earth pressure on embedded vertical plate anchors in sand

Passive earth pressure on embedded anchor plates constitutes a viable resisting force for the design of underground structures. In the current practice, these forces are empirically calculated, ignoring the effects of the depth of embedment and the level of consolidation of the surrounding soil, which takes place during plate installation on the in situ stress levels. Accordingly, wide discrepancies between predicted and measured pullout capacities of these plates were reported in the literature. Numerical model was developed using finite-element technique and the constitutive law of Mohr?CCoulomb to simulate the case of a retaining wall partially supported by an embedded anchor plate in sand. The results produced in this investigation showed that the passive earth pressure acting on anchor plates increases due to the increase of angle of shearing resistance and the overconsolidation ratio of sand, and it decreases due to an increase of the embedment depth of anchor. Design theories were developed for the case of embedded anchor plate in overconsolidated sand. The theories developed will satisfy the design needed in terms of allowable pullout load and/or displacement.     

Study of photoelectric observations of the eclipsing binary system FZ-Delphinus

Photoelectric observations in B and V for the FZ Del system are presented and its light curves are analyzed. Absolute parameters are obtained. The system shows a near contact subgaint secondary component with a likely K1 spectral type. The O-C curve is presented and probably a secular orbital period variations is detected on a timescale of about 6.9×10⁶ yrs, suggesting thermal timescale mass transfer. A new light elements for the system have been obtained. The system can be considered as an early stage of conservative case of mass transfer. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Spectral emissivity measurements of Mercury's surface indicate Mg- and Ca-rich mineralogy, K-spar, Na-rich plagioclase, rutile, with possible perovskite, and garnet

Mid-infrared 2-D spectroscopic measurements from 8.0 to 12.7 μm of Mercury were taken using Boston University's Mid-Infrared Spectrometer and Imager (MIRSI) mounted on the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, 7-11 April 2006. Measurements reported here cover radar bright region C, a dark plains region west of Caloris Basin, and the interior of Caloris Basin. By use of spectral deconvolution with a large spectral library composed of many mineral compositions and grain size separates, we fitted, or “unmixed”, the Mercury spectra. We find mineral suites composed of magnesium-rich orthopyroxene and olivine, Ca-, Mg-, Na-rich clinopyroxene, potassium feldspar, and Na-bearing plagioclase feldspar. Both Ca- and Mg-rich garnet (pyrope and grossular, respectively) are apparently present in small amounts. Opaque minerals are required for spectral matching, with rutile (TiO₂) repeatedly providing the “best fit”. However, in the case of the radar bright region C, perovskite also contributed to a very good fit. Caloris Basin infill is rich in both potassium feldspar and Na-rich plagioclase. There is little or no olivine in the Caloris interior smooth plains. Together with the high alkali content, this indicates that resurfacing magmas were low to intermediate in SiO₂. Data suggest the dark plains exterior to Caloris are highly differentiated low-iron basaltic magmas resulting in material that might be classified as oligoclase basalts.